Linh, Me & Blackwater Falls, West Virginia

Linh and I with falls in background.
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Blackwater Falls & River Gorge

Top pic = Blackwater Falls.
Bottom pic = Blackwater River Gorge <-- view from the lodge where we all stayed.
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Linh's Cousin Thinh Departs WVU & Morgantown

Linh and I have been very busy this past week helping Linh's cousin Thinh settle into WVU and Morgantown.
Unfortunately, Thinh has decided not to attend WVU and she/her father have gone to Detroit with her uncle. This happen very suddenly and surprised both Linh and me!
These events have been very upsetting for Linh - including concerns about Thinh's US F1 Student visa which is no longer valid.
Above pic is, left to right, Chuong/Christina/Jessica (Linh's uncle, his wife and daughter from Detroit), Thinh (Linh's cousin), me, Nhu (Thinh's father/Linh's uncle), and Linh - having farewell diner last Monday.
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Updates

Many of you have been asking about Linh - so I decided to post this brief update.

Linh received her grade for her last (2nd) Summer session Social Work course (Methods 3; Organizations & Communities) = A! So, her Summer Session (and US university!) GPA = 3.5!

Linh's cousin (Thinh) is getting settled-into WVU. She will probably be moving into a "Host Family" home.

Also, this blog hit new milestones: more than 13,000 visits, and; more than 35,000 pages viewed.
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Farewell Dinner

I will return home tomorrow. So - tonight I treated all to dinner tonight at Red Lobster (above pic). And - of course - chauffeured Linh & Thinh to Walmart to shop for Thinh's apartment stuff. Ugh.
Current plans are for Nhu and maybe Thinh to fly from Pittsburgh to Detroit, MI next Thursday, August 21. Nhu will return to Saigon from Detroit on September 1st.
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Linh's Vietnamese Cousin Arrives @ WVU!

During the past 4+ months, Linh (with only minor assistance from me) has been assisting Linh's cousin, Thinh (pronounced thun), get admitted to WVU's Intensive English Program (IEP).
Linh's efforts succeeded and we picked up her cousin Thinh (2nd from left in above pic), and her father Nhu (left in above pic) at Pittsburgh, PA airport (PIT) early yesterday morning.
Thinh begins her WVU IEP next Monday, August 18 - Linh begins her first semester MSW program at the same time. Between now and then, Linh and I will be helping Thinh (with her father) find/move into an apartment, get a cell phone, establish bank/debit card accounts, tour WVU campus/Morgantown, adjust to US time/food/temperature changes, etc.
It is going to be a very busy week - and of course - updates to this blog.
Btw - This blog hit new milestones: Visits = 13,000+, Pages Viewed = 35,000+! Thanks to all for your continued interests!
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More 1st's

My neighbors, Jim & Heather, came with me to visit Linh at WVU this weekend. They have known Linh for 5+ years, but have not seen her since last January!
Friday night we and Linh's friends revisited Schmitt's Saloon and Music Hal.
Above pic = Heather, Jim, Linh, Hanh (20 years old) Thinh & me. Hanh is Thinh's sister visiting him from Vietnam - her 1st trip to US and Schmitt's was her 1st US "saloon" and 1st live music venue!
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Schmitt's

Schmitts (http://www.schmittssaloon.com/) had 3 great live bands performing lat night.
Top Pic = Headliner Joshua Scott Jones (http://www.joshuascottjones.com/) who is the male vocalist part of Steel Magnolia duo!
Bottom Pic = Braden Stover (http://www.bradenstovermusic.com/), 1 of 2 lead-in bands
Sorry - no pics of the other lead-in band.
All had a great time - albeit everyone suffered some momentary hearing loss because the music was so loud!
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1st US Birthday!

Linh will be a quarter-century (25) old on July 18th! So, Heather, Jim & I surprised her with a "birthday, New-York-style cheesecake" - replete with US flags to celebrate her 1st birthday in US! Ironic - we sneaked the cheesecake into a Chinese/Vietnamese restaurant!
Fyi - Linh doesn't like US sweets - but loves cheesecake!
Top Pic = 4 of us with just top of cake.
Bottom Pic = Cake alone - note US flags!
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Brynn Marie

For some unknown reason, the pic of Brynn Marie "disappeared" from below blog update. So - I decieded to add pic again - see above.
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